1. Technical Field
The present invention relates to a method and apparatus for treating alopecia, hair loss, and loss of hair color (i.e., graying). In particular, it relates to a method of treating the scalp or skin of an individual to increase the blood flow and general health of the skin to promote the healthier growth of hair and restoration of hair color.
2. Background Art
The loss of hair has traditionally been a problem for a substantial percentage of the population. Whether the problem is alopecia (male pattern baldness) or thinning hair, the individuals affected will generally find this to be distressing and detrimental to their appearance. In addition, the loss of hair will often make individuals appear to be older than they are. For this reason, a variety of attempts have been made to improve an individual's appearance by restoring the appearance of a full head of hair.
Early attempts to address this problem focused on the use of hair pieces (i.e., toupees or wigs). While these devices provided some degree of success, they have several drawbacks. In particular, they often have an unnatural appearance which allows them to be easily detected, even from a distance, by other individuals. In order to make one of these devices appear to be the natural hair of the wearer, they must be constructed in a fairly expensive manner using real human hair which is matched in color to the individual's remaining hair. Unfortunately, many individuals cannot afford a high quality hair piece such as this, and settle for a lower quality hair piece fabricated from synthetic fibers.
In addition, hair pieces have another drawback in that they may be inconvenient to use in situations, such as swimming, where they may become damaged or loosened. In this situation, the individual may be embarrassed due to the failure of the device. It would be desirable to improve the appearance of an individual's hair without having to resort to hair pieces fastened to an individual's head which are expensive and occasionally prone to failure due to environmental circumstances.
Those skilled in the art will recognize that more complicated mechanical solutions such as “hair weaving” exist. These more complicated solutions typically have the same drawbacks and problems as those associated with hair pieces. In addition, they are often more expensive than conventional hair pieces.
Another attempt to address this problem has been to surgically replace missing hair with “hair transplants.” This surgical solution overcomes the problems created by the use of hair pieces in that the replacement hair transplants use the real hair of the individual, which results in a perfect color match and a natural appearance. In addition, the individual has no restrictions, such as those encountered in swimming and other activities, which were discussed above in regard to hair pieces. Unfortunately, this method of treating hair loss is expensive, and requires the use of medical professionals for the surgical hair transplant procedure. As a result, this procedure may not be available to a substantial portion of the public due to its high cost. It would be desirable to have a method of facilitating the growth of hair which was economically available to a substantial part of the entire public.
In addition to hair pieces and surgical transplants, pharmaceutical products have also been developed to encourage hair growth. These products can take the form of ingestible medications or topical skin treatments. Ingestible medications have been proven to encourage hair growth, but they have several significant drawbacks. In particular, they are typically prescription medications which require the cost and inconvenience of visiting a physician to obtain a prescription. In addition, the fact that they are prescription medications typically means that they will have a higher cost than non-prescription drugs. Perhaps more important than the issue of cost are the potential side effects of ingestible drugs. Quite often, the use of ingestible medications may result in serious health side effects, such as damage to the individual's liver, or other internal organs, or present other serious side effects. It would be desirable to have a method of stimulating hair growth which did not carry the risks of side effects inherent in ingestible pharmaceutical medications.
Another type of pharmaceutical medication has been the use of topical skin treatments. This type of medication is often similar to prescription medications with the same cost disadvantage of ingestible medications. While some are now available as over-the-counter preparations, they typically have a reduced strength and are less effective than are their prescription counterparts. In addition, they typically have to be applied every day to achieve and maintain their desired results. It would be desirable to have an effective low-cost method of stimulating hair growth which did not require potential visits to a physician, a continuous use of expensive medications, and daily treatments to ensure results.
Scientists in Europe and Asia have found over the last 25 years that lasers can be used to stimulate hair growth. Devices have been developed having structures similar to a large floor mounted, or chair mounted, helmet. These devices contain multiple laser assemblies, and are designed to irradiate the individual's entire scalp and hair with laser energy. It is been found that there are several disadvantages associated with this approach. In particular, these are typically very large and expensive commercial devices which are found in beauty salons and spas. In order to take advantage of them, an individual will go to the establishment where the devices are located and pay for treatments on a per treatment basis. Over time, this represents a fairly expensive proposition for the individual, and typically requires a trained operator to conduct the treatment.
The helmet-like structure of this device creates an additional disadvantage. Since the device covers the head of the individual, a substantial portion of the laser energy which is intended for application to the individual's scalp is blocked by the hair of the individual, thinning though it may be, which effectively forms a canopy over the individual's scalp. It would be desirable to have an inexpensive method of applying laser treatments which does not require an individual to go to a specific location where large laser devices are used, which does not require the individual to pay every time a laser treatment is taken, and which maximizes the amount of laser energy applied to the scalp while minimizing the amount of laser energy which is blocked by the individual's hair. Likewise, it would be desirable to have a laser treatment device which has a relatively small number of lasers, and which could apply laser energy to the individual's scalp without interference by the individual's hair.
Another problem associated with hair is the loss of hair color (i.e., graying) which has the effect of making individuals appear to be older. Individuals often attempt to treat this problem by dying their hair. Unfortunately, this method of treatment has several disadvantages. For example, as was the case with hair pieces, discussed above, it can be difficult to produce the proper hair color such that it is not obvious that the hair was dyed. In addition, dyed hair tends to fade over time which results in re-appearance of the grey hair and a persistent change in color. Individuals who dye their hair typically have to re-dye their hair periodically. Of course, this represents an ongoing expense and inconvenience to the individual. Further, unless the dying process is performed by a trained individual, the results may be undesirable and unattractive. This further increases the cost of hair dying due to the need to hire a trained professional to perform the process. It would be desirable to have a method of treating loss of hair color without having to have an ongoing expense for dyes, or an ongoing expense for trained professionals to apply the dyes, and an ongoing inconvenience.
It has also been found that non-coherent light, while lacking the characteristics of power concentration inherent in laser light, can provide stimulation to the scalp which has beneficial and therapeutic effects in terms of stimulating the natural growth of hair. Unfortunately, the same problems encountered when attempting to deliver laser light to the scalp are also found when delivering non-coherent light. In particular, the problems associated with large stationary devices found in hair salons and spas, as well as the inability to penetrate an individual's hair would be found in either category of light emitting device.
While providing several methods of treating alopecia, hair loss, and graying, the prior art has failed to provide an apparatus which is inexpensive to manufacture, has a minimum number of components, minimizes the amount of laser energy blocked by an individual's hair, and can be used without leaving the individual's home or using costly commercial equipment and trained personnel.